There shouldn’t be many surprises in the list of the Indian team’s eagerly anticipated core contracts, which will be announced soon, excluding a handful. Some potential players who might not fully qualify for the central retainership may receive some allowances from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Abhishek Sharma, the talented left-handed batsman for the Punjab and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) clubs, might be at the top of the list. He is among the best cricket players in both the current IPL and world cricket. It is anticipated that he will be placed in Grade C, which guarantees an annual retainer of INR 1 crore.
According to the usual BCCI guideline, “athletes who meet the criteria of playing a minimum of three Tests or eight ODIs or 10 T20Is within the specified period will automatically be included in Grade C on a pro-rata basis.” Abhishek has played in 12 Twenty20 Internationals during the allotted time frame, which is typically from October to September, and has appeared in 17 T20Is overall.
Nitish Reddy is also vying for a spot on the central contracts list, in addition to Abhishek (24). The 21-year-old Andhra all-rounder should be on the list since he has played the necessary number of Test matches, which includes five Test matches and four Twenty20 Internationals. For the record, he was part of all five Tests in the BGT series Down Under.
In a similar vein, Harshit Rana might also be mentioned. Rana does not meet the requirements in any of the three forms independently, despite having played two Test matches, five ODIs, and one T20I. However, he has played enough games overall to qualify for the list.
As previously reported, Shreyas Iyer, who was one of the standout players in the recently concluded Champions Trophy, and Varun Chakaravarthy (four ODIs and eighteen T20Is) should also be included in the list. Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma will all remain in the A+ category, and it is unlikely that the rankings will move much—give or take two or three names.
In a few days, the contracts and the modifications to the Indian teams’ support staff should be revealed. It is believed that the choices were made not long ago.
